Christian Children's Home

The Libby family band was made up entirely of one family. The father and mother were perhaps not as musical as their children, but could play the drums and accessories. More remarkable than their music, however, was their message that Time was short. If we really believe in God, the Bible and eternity, we ought to lay aside every worldly weight and dedicate ourselves to winning souls in the limited time that remains to us.

The grown children as well as the father gave up their regular jobs, sold their house, bought an old bus and set out to preach. With the whole family playing, they could draw a crowd anywhere. After the whole band had played some would do musical stunts like playing a duet, holding two trumpets to his lips, fingering with each hand, and play respectable two part music.

Now when a group sets out for a month or two it can be a lark, but when I saw how they kept faithfully to that campaign the year round year after year, I was impressed, very humbled and impressed. That took dedication and meant continuous sacrifice, leaving all the modern comforts Americans are usually so wedded to, and proved a very unusual love for the Lord and His lost sheep.

They went down through Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador and Panama, preaching and playing in all denominations of churches, in hamlets or in cities. When they were in Guatemala, I arranged for some open air meetings and also a meeting in the big penitentiary. They had no regular denominational financial backing, living by faith, making no great solicitations, but took up offerings when they were in a service in a church. Some high pressure and popular evangelistic campaigners seem to roll in big money, but it was easy to see these people preached the old rugged cross, the narrow way, the little flock and they could continue such ministry only with a very humble sacrificial life style.

Accordingly I felt it important that when they were in open air meetings and other places where no offering was taken, our mission should participate financially. We also gave them tracts or printed a quantity of their own tracts. The Lord has blessed their consecrated work in a wonderful way.

Christians, when they see the monied popular campaigners exploiting the Gospel, especially exploiting healing campaigns, should back off and realize there are still other disciples of the Lord, living as humbly as the disciples in the early primitive church and preaching the same Gospel, too, as they did.

The Lindren family opened up a mission to help the poor after the earthquake of 1976. Their work was in the midst of a shanty town that had sprung up nearly overnight right after the earthquake and the place was called 4th of February, the date of the earthquake.

The Lindgrens did a great work there, materially and evangelistically, but Mrs. Lindgren was burdened by the tragic situation of so many babies and children who needed more than a meal in their tummies. The kids had every kind of disease, skin infections, worms and, of course, lice. They had only the dirt to play in and that was often mostly mud caused by open sewage. If a mission could render hygienic and medical treatment, but then return the children to their former situation, it would be but a short time before they were as dirty and re-infected as before.

Clearly, the real solution would be a Christian Children's Home and Orphanage. Mrs. Lindgren opened one on a shoestring and faith. The other resources were meager, but her faith was great.

Soon other missions and churches were lending a hand for so necessary a work. You can imagine a before and after picture of children from one to seven years old, showing mud, rags, sores and worms, and then later after a period of treatment, scrubbings, feeding and dressed in clothes that are clean and decent.

We took on most of the providing shoes and clothes, which was not great deal at first with a few children, but as the work grew there and their numbers increased, it was no small amount.

Perhaps the most important part of such a work is the spiritual permanent foundation that can be given to little hearts and minds, and then be able to keep them as they grow up in a Christian home environment during their tender years.

Such homes ought to be opened by Christians all over Latin America. The situation of so many thousand children of vice- ridden parents is like a curse. The mothers in such areas are not married, the men come for a while then drift on. Children are born nearly every year, many dying, some being smothered to death and the rest destined to grow up amid dirt, disease and vice. Perhaps technically, they are not orphans, but would in many cases, be much better off if they were so classified and taken to other homes.

With the great increase of evangelical believers, Guatemala has improved greatly in 20 years and is still improving steadily, but the situation is still really terrible in most other countries of America-Latina.

There are still countless millions in need, materially and spiritually, if there are consecrated American Christians who feel they ought to dedicate their full time to the work of the Lord in the little time there remains on this planet earth.